Do not do business with “a suspended official”, disclose information

The acting director general of the Cagayan de Oro Water District (COWD) has issued an order instructing employees “not to do business with suspended officials and not to release any information or reports without our knowledge and consent.”

COWD Interim Director General Fermin Jarales issued a memorandum on Friday, May 30, 2024, after the interim managers appointed by the Local Water Utilities Administration (LWUA) took their oath before Mayor Rolando Uy.

“All employees of COWD are hereby informed that we, the interim board of directors and the interim managing director of COWD, have assumed office at COWD as of yesterday, May 29, 2024. Therefore, all employees are instructed to report to us from now on and not to do business with suspended executives or share any information or reports without our knowledge and consent,” the memorandum said.

The LWUA has already intervened in the administration of the water district to resolve the water supply problem resulting from the contract dispute between the COWD and the water supplier Cagayan de Oro Bulk Water Inc. (COBI).

The notice states that based on the resolution approved by the Interim Board of Directors (IBOD), all members of the regular Board of Directors shall refrain from exercising their powers and functions for six months with effect from May 29, 2024.

The memorandum also states that the current managing director will resign and follow the instructions of the interim managing director.

“I have tried to improve relations with employees. I spoke to the management committee yesterday that politics has returned to normal,” Jarales said.

The LWUA warned the suspended board and executive director that they could be accused of abuse of office if they refused to resign.

However, the suspended COWD officials stated that this could only be determined by the Office of the Government Corporate Council (OGCC).

“We are still functional. We can still do some things, but we cannot say whether we should do that, but we can still do some things… “We have to take legal action against the party involved,” said Dr. Gerry Caño, one of the suspended board members.

The suspended COWD leaders stated that they would continue to exercise their mandate until the OGCC issues a legal opinion on the matter.

Interim officials are currently focused on resolving the water district’s unbilled water problem.